Posts tagged ‘Marketing’

This post was written by Clay Schossow, one of three new contributors to DR. WHAW?, which will be a daily feature moving forward. A big thanks to Clay and the other two for their help, and look for a post about these three rockstars tomorrow!

Hey everyone! I’m Clay and I’m going to be helping Rebecca keep DR. WHAW? updated by posting twice per week (Mondays and Fridays). I’m really happy to work with her for a few reasons:

I think DR. WHAW? is a great concept and I’m excited to be involved.

She’s cultivated a really great community on this blog and I’m happy to become a part of the conversation.

She’s a fellow Tar Heel and feels my pain about this basketball season.

I run a web design, development and marketing start-up, so my posts will tend to be more about entrepreneurship, business and marketing. Rebecca was cool with this direction, as we both believe variety is the spice of life. This post is my first in the DR. WHAW? series, so please let me know in the comments what you think of the content I post, as my goal is to provide the most interesting and thought-provoking articles I can. Feel free to offer up criticism, I promise I won’t take it personally. And I promise that I’ll keep getting better as I post more.

So, without further ado, here’s what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work (but wanted to!).

DR. WHAW? – February 1, 2010

Why do we take ourselves so seriously? — This is a great, short piece from a few days ago that I just got to read today on the Brains on Fire blog. In a world where so many people and companies take themselves alarmingly seriously, this post was a refreshing breath of fresh air. It’s always nice to be reminded that people like to interact and work with folks that can laugh at themselves and have a good time. These laughs and fun moments will likely translate into trust and a positive experience.

The Present Value of Future Cash Flows — Don’t let the title intimidate you; this post is a really easy read about a basic tenet of investing. More than the individual post, I’m excited about this series by Fred Wilson, MBA Mondays. Fred is one of the better known and more successful VC’s out there, and he’s going to start a weekly post giving a basic MBA lesson in layman’s terms. For those of us who focus on the business side of things but don’t have an MBA, I imagine this series will be very helpful and enlightening.

Notes From a Conversation With Y Combinator’s Paul Graham — Paul Graham is an accomplished entrepreneur, essayist, and venture capitalist (through his Y Combinator program). I always enjoy reading things he writes and watching interviews with him. I thought these notes were kind of the Paul Graham CliffsNotes, as it gives a nice, quick 30,000 view of his overall philosophies on entrepreneurship. If you enjoy this, I definitely recommend you delve into some of his writing on his site.

Trail of Breadcrumbs — A new study says 89% of journalists turn to blogs for research and 65% use social media. Some convincingly high numbers of why organizations should be engaging in these media. These numbers rang true for me, as a reporter from Nebraska called me a few weeks ago to discuss some of the political articles on our blog; they ended up spinning our posts into the backbone of their story, which was really cool. Also, love Todd’s analogy of social media and blog content to breadcrumbs.

Well, those are my first five articles. I know Rebecca usually posts seven, but she still has a leg up in the experience category. Seven will be something to which I will aspire. Let me know your thoughts on this inaugural post and I’ll work to keep getting better. Looking forward to the conversation!

Oh boy! I had a great night last night with my old coworkers from StrategyOne, and I ended up coming home much later than I anticipated! I thought maybe one drink after work and then I would head home. Instead, I ended up talking late into the night with two great friends, and I cannot wait to do it again! I finally feel like I’m making some true, good friends here in Chicago. And that feels great.

Early this morning, I met up with Sydney Owen (fellow blogger and new Chicagoan) for coffee before heading to volunteer orientation for PAWS Chicago. It was a great morning, and I’m very excited to get started with training and then hopefully some volunteering this coming week! Also, it was great to meet Sydney IRL!

So now that you know why DR. WHAW? is so late, I bring you what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work (but wanted to) yesterday.

DR. WHAW? – January 15, 2010

1. Top Social Media Monitoring & Measurement Posts of the Week by Hannah Del Porto — Why feature this post when it could be a replacement for DR. WHAW? Well, I think it’s just darn cool that I’m not the only one on the look out for posts about measurement, particularly in the social media space. Also, I agree with many of the picks that they chose! I don’t think I’ll lose all of my readers just because I share this link, I know y’all like me for other reasons, too. In all seriousness, this is an awesome digest and I highly recommend it!

2. Social Media Marketing Measurement from Google Socializer — I wanted to share this post with you for two reasons: 1) It’s a good argument for why measurement should focus on actual returns, not clicks, and 2) I saw this post Retweeted all over the place yesterday which was really encouraging. Every time I see that people are not only writing about this, but also sharing it, I am so thrilled to know that this is slowly becoming mainstream.

3. 6 steps to measure social media by Katie Paine — This post was a no-brainer for me because it’s from one of the best minds in measurement today, Katie Paine. More than that, however, this is really one of the first times I’ve seen Katie focusing upon online media in her measurement as most of her work is based on traditional media. I like to see her wisdom being applied in this new space, and I’m excited to see more!

6. London really is the capital of Twitter by Camille Jouneaux — This is a really cool use of social media metrics! The Twitter population was broken down by country and also by city, and guess what they found! Exacly, London has the most people on Twitter. Maybe not a huge revelation, but I still thought it was a cool use of metrics.

7. Public relations in the recession: Good news from The Economist — This post does not really focus on measurement, but I still thought it was worth highlighting because it suggests that public relations is one of the few industries that isn’t shrinking in this recession. In fact, this downturn may have been one of the best things ever to happy to public relations. What do you think about this?

I hope your weekend has started off well, y’all! What have you been up to? What are your plans for the rest of the weekend? And make sure to leave me some comments on how I’m doing!

DR. WHAW? is back by popular demand! Well at least back for Arik Hanson who was kind enough to feature me on his blog today. I have been busier than usual and wasn’t sure if anyone was reading DR. WHAW? so I decided to stop writing it for a while to focus on more meaty posts.

Hearing at least one person misses DR. WHAW? and was following along, I decided to bring it back! So here it is, what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work today.

DR. WHAW? – January 12, 2009

1. A decade of measurement successes and failures… by Ed Moed — Since it is a new year, I appreciated this post which looked at the best and worst in measurement from the past 10 years. We have come a long way this decade, but there is still quite a ways to go before measurement is universally accepted and practiced, at least in PR. This is a pretty comprehensive list, though, and it definitely worth a read to understand where we were and where we still need to go.

2. Forrester reveals how to optimize mobile ROI by Dan Butcher — I had to include this article since just a few weeks ago, I wondered how we could possibly measure mobile. While this does not answer all of my question about measuring mobile marketing, it definitely provides a good start. And if you’re thinking of integrating mobile into your own projects or campaigns, I would recommend this article as a way to better understand the mobile climate.

3. The Five Biggest Mistakes in Measuring Social Media by Gary Stein — While measuring social media is incredibly important, I like that this post calls out the most popular mistakes in social media because they are easy to make. The space is new and it’s hard to adjust, but we need to be careful to ensure that we’re really measuring what we think we are. And it’s important to know all metrics that are out there that could be applicable to any given campaign or program.

4. There’s No Silver Bullet For The Big, Bad Social Media Measurement Wolf by Marta Stickland — Just like the last post, it’s important to recognize the importance of measurement, but it should not be taken lightly. There are lots of ins and outs to measurement (especially with social media), and it’s important to understand that one size does not fit all. Just as programs must be customized for each client or brand, so too must measurement programs be customized for every program. Not convinced? Read more!

5. Facebook privacy, self-esteem, and the dangerous ease of social media measurement by Chris Reed — OK. So the measurement nerd in me wants to cry out that this is unfair, but the rest of me knows that there is some validity to this concern. Has it really become too easy for someone like to me to monitor and analyze online conversations? Are we losing our sense of privacy? This is a great insight into how measurement and social media are affecting the rest of our lives and whether or not they’re truly good things.

6. HOW TO: Use a Start Page to Stay Organized by Barb Dybwad — If you know me, you know that I live and die by my planner. I always have it with me in my purse, and I only take it out to write in it or look out for fear of losing it. I know, I should go technological so I don’t have to worry, but I just can’t seem to bring myself to. Maybe this would help, this is a great and new way to keep yourself organized! I just thought it was fun.

7. The Children of Cyberspace: Old Fogies by Their 20s by Brad Stone — I loved this article from the New York Times because I can definitely relate to it. I’m only 22, but there are days when I feel so far behind my younger sister who is 18. I can only imagine what it would be like to talk with someone even younger who has grown up with even more technology than I have, and I can’t remember ever not having a computer! It’s always important to realize that technology has more effects on us that we realize, and I think this is an important look into society.

And with that, I will leave you to your other reading. I hope that you’re glad to see DR. WHAW? back, and I hope that you will leave me some feedback so I know I can keep improving. Thank you for reading, y’all!

Lately, all I’ve been hearing about is how mobile is the future. Mobile marketing is growing and will only continue to explode in the coming years. My own work and curiosity makes me wonder how measurement will need to grow as mobile marketing does.

Recently I had the opportunity to have a good, long chat with two fabulous IT guys: Ryan and Adam. And I have to say I felt more than a little nerdy as I chatted in the kitchen with two of my oldest friend’s significant others talking about user strings and Web servers, while a group of my oldest girlfriends sat in the living room and decided which male actor most represented each of them.

I asked these two IT guys what they knew about mobile and what they thought about its emergence. Luckily, they were more than happy to tell me everything they know and where they think the industry is going.

Then I asked them this: how can we measure mobile marketing?

I told them a few things I knew clients would want to be able to measure, and they told me about tracking some usage through user strings. And I think this is definitely a great start, but it won’t bring back as much data as I know will be needed moving forward.

As companies begin to use mobile more, they are going to want to understand how effective their campaigns are. I wonder, is there a way to track mobile usage without building metrics into a mobile application or interface itself? Is there a third party out there already tracking this kind of usage?

Adam and Ryan gave me a great start, but now I’m asking y’all to help me get farther. How do I get enough data to be meaningful?

I’ve not been around the social media game terribly long, but I have been around long enough to notice that there are certain psychological traits that seem to be common. I don’t mean to insult anyone; I simply mean to point out traits that seem to be fueled by social media.

Because social media (and the Internet in general) are instant, impatience seems to logically follow. I have found myself guilty of this one. If I publish a blog post, sometimes I find myself wondering why no one reads it right away. When I Tweet a question, why don’t I get an instant response? Because we can get answers from search engines so quickly, I think often we expect the same instant response from social media.

This only because a true problem when it comes to a crisis of sorts. I remember a few months ago, Best Buy fell under fire because an angry customer sought help from @BestBuyCMO on Twitter. The person behind the Twitter handle signed off after a brief interaction and did not come back until the next day. In @BestBuyCMO’s absence, Twitter was up in arms about how Best Buy could ignore the situation. In hindsight, though, wasn’t it unreasonable to expect an immediate response? On a Sunday?

Lately I’ve been noticing that we tend to jump around from topic to topic without fully resolving anything. We lack focus. I participate in weekly Twitter chats, and while these are definitely helpful, the same topic is never addressed twice. It’s so great to have access to many voices giving advice and asking questions about the same topic or idea. It loses a great deal of its power, though, when there’s really just chatter with no clear answer or direction in the end.

Perhaps I’m missing those who are truly focused on one topic, but I feel as though most of us (myself included) try to find the newest idea to discuss instead of looking at an idea in depth. Have you noticed this?

With the Internet becoming so ubiquitous, there is a greater need for safety online. It’s obviously not smart to disclose all of your personal information, but at the same time, sometimes I think we are too paranoid. Customers are not out to destroy all big brands. Companies should be cautious and we should all be careful about how we interact online, but let’s face it, the online world isn’t out to get us (at least in most cases).

I am by no means suggesting that we throw caution to the wind and simply do as we please, but I think sometimes we all make it seem as though a company’s brand may completely fall apart should they decide to take on social media.

In all fairness, I should disclose that I have never studied psychology beyond introductory classes, but it seems to me to make sense that the immediacy of social media has encouraged these traits in all of us. What do you think? What else do you notice? Am I completely off base?

It has been a great week. I got a lot done this weekend, too! It was quite amazing! How much did you get done? I hope to hear that all of your weekends were productive and relaxing. And to cap it all off here’s what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work this week.

DR. WHAW? Sunday Digest – Week-ending October 25, 2009

1. The Case of the Missing Social Media Metrics by Rikin Diwan — I love this! While there are many great strides toward online social media measurement, there are still some pretty big gaps. There are some great questions in here that still need to be answered. How can you address this lack of knowledge in your own campaigns? How could you find the answers to these questions?

2. Social Media Measurement 2009 by Katie Paine — This is a great presentation about social media measurement from the queen of public relations measurement, Katie Paine. This is the presentation given as the Institute of Public Relations’ measurement summit, an event I only dream of attending someday. If you couldn’t attend, I seriously recommend you browse through her presentation.

3. 5 Free Sentiment Analysis Tools, 5 Very Different Results by Craig Hodges — I think that all companies need to be measuring, and I think there is a lot of value in sentiment analysis. This article examines five different tools, though and shows that maybe these tools aren’t perfect. I like that someone is taking the time to evaluate these different tools, to me that’s a pretty big deal for measurement in and of itself.

4. How to Set Up Your Google Analytics Account Structure to Avoid Headaches Later by Helen Overland — Having a Google Analytics account in the first place is a huge step in the right direction, but I love this overview of how to set up your account. It will seriously help you make sure that you set your goals ahead of time and make sure you don’t end up confused. I really strongly recommend this article if you’re considering using Google Analytics (and you should be) to measure campaigns or your work.

5. Introducing the Social Analytics Lifecycle by Ken Burbary and Chuck Hemann — I absolutely love this! This shows a very insightful look into the lifecycle of social analytics and why everyone should be taking advantage of the data available through social media. You should definitely take a look at this graphic that they have created and comment on it. This is a perfect start, and I think it will evolve into a great tool. What do you think?

6. “Listening” graphics have a long way to go by Mark Schaefer — I’m all about measurement, but I have never claimed that the current methods or metrics are perfect. I love that Mark Schaefer took the time to analyze what is currently available to demonstrate what we still need.

7. Coke Weighs in on Earned Media ROI by Carol Kruse — Another big WOW! A major corporation has weighed in on ROI, and I can’t get enough! I’m happy to see a big player recognizing the importance of ROI and hope it will show other corporations that they need to be measuring, too. There’s also just some plain good insight, which is worth a read in and of itself.

And with that, I intend to enjoy the rest of my weekend by being completely unproductive. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday, y’all!

And so another week ends! I am sad to say that I will not be traveling to the University of Minnesota to visit my little sister, who is a freshman. I’ve been feeling kind of lousy, and I felt it wasn’t safe to drive for 12 hours this weekend. So I shall be catching up on my blog (get pumped, readers!) and getting my life organized. I’m jet-setting off to Sydney, Australia, in two weeks, and I could not be more excited or more unprepared! In the meantime, I bring you what I Didn’t Read While Hard At Work today!

DR. WHAW? – October 23, 2009

1. Social Media: The Need For Measurement from SEO Book — You know why I’m including this one without even clicking the link, right? Any article that argues for the need of measurement in social media or any other medium is a must-read in my book. So why this one in particular? This one is thorough, and I think that with slight tweaking it could be something you show directly to a boss who needs serious convincing. Do you agree?

3. “Listening” graphics have a long way to go by Mark Schaefer — I’m all about measurement, but I have never claimed that the current methods or metrics are perfect. I love that Mark Schaefer took the time to analyze what is currently available to demonstrate what we still need.

4. How Google Analytics just got a lot more powerful by Guy Kawasaki — Google Analytics recently announced a whole slew of new services, and this is a great explanation of what this means and why you should be paying attention. He says who cares about Google Wave when there’s more to Google Analytics. Your interest should be piqued and rightly so.

5. Social Networking ROI by Greg Gianforte — Wow! An examination of the ROI of social networking, I love it! I’ve not seen this before, and I’m happy to see that someone is taking a look at this. There is no real mathematic backing here, but there is some great theoretical suggestions as to how to measure the ROI of social networking.

6. Coke Weighs in on Earned Media ROI by Carol Kruse — Another big WOW! A major corporation has weighed in on ROI, and I can’t get enough! I’m happy to see a big player recognizing the importance of ROI and hope it will show other corporations that they need to be measuring, too. There’s also just some plain good insight, which is worth a read in and of itself.

7. Top 10 brand and marketing trends for 2010 by Robert Passikoff — This is a great look at what might lie ahead. I strongly urge you to read through these and think about them seriously. Do you think this is right? What would you include or exclude? It’s always important to be looking to the future, and this is a great start to what should be a broad conversation. Weigh in!

Thank goodness it’s Friday, eh? I’m happy to be relaxing and spending some time checking things off my to-do list this weekend. Also, I’ll be happy to sleep in and get really better. What are your plans for the weekend?